Wednesday, July 15, 2020Summer Campaign Trail: Lujan Comes With First TV Ad; Reports Another Big Money Haul; Southern Congress Poll Has It Very Tight And Restaurant Closures Surface As Campaign Issue In the US senate race Rep. Ben Ray Lujan is up with his first TV ad. It's not going to rock any boats just build the name ID of the Dem front-runner and remind voters that unlike his Republican rival Mark Ronchetti, he is a native New Mexican: Growing up in New Mexico. Working the land. I hear the voices of my family and the generations who came before us. I’ve always said New Mexico is worth fighting for. That’s why I work every day to lower prescription drug costs, help veterans in rural communities get the benefits they’ve earned, and protect the water that’s the lifeblood of our communities. The ad shows Lujan with a group loading hay and looking very unlike the DC swamp creature that Ronchetti is sure to present him as. The ad is serviceable and works well with Lujan's narration but when he faces the camera he appears to squint and is not relaxed with his lines. To his credit, Lujan is at his TV best in high pressure broadcasts such as Meet the Press. He can't be expected to be as smooth as TV pro Ronchetti, a former weather forecaster, but this is now the United States Senate. Stepping it up a notch is in order. Ben Ray will have plenty of money for more ads. He continues to pile up the cash: . . . Luján raised more than $1.5 million during the second quarter – his highest fundraising haul for a quarter. . . Luján. . . rejects corporate PAC money. Between April 1st and June 30th, he raised over $1.5 million from more than 21,000 supporters, including contributions from each of New Mexico's 33 counties. Over 89% of donations were $25 or less. Lujan had $2.7 million in cash as of May 13. Now this haul. Ronchetti last reported $430,000 in cash. He has not released his latest fund-raising totals. DC's Nathan Gonzales of Inside Elections rates the Senate race "solid Democratic." SOUTHERN ACTION The first TV ad in that hot southern congressional contest between Dem Rep. Xochitl Torres Small and Republican Yvette Herrell comes from Torres Small. She wastes no time mentioning President Trump and in a positive way: . . . I put politics aside and worked with Republicans, Democrats and President Trump to pass the coronavirus relief plan. Okay, watching a dyed in the wool liberal like Torres Small trying to cozy up to Trump will make her progressive fans queasy, but it's smart politics and could stop a conservative anti-Xochitl frenzy from developing. The ad is well-produced and the young Torres Small is a convincing narrator and pleasing presence. The Republicans are going to need their best to take the prize from her. There is also new polling. It comes from a Republican pollster but the Tarrance Group has been around forever and polling the state almost as long. The survey conducted among 400 voters July 7-9 for the National Republican Congressional Campaign Committee has the race a dead heat with each contender getting 46 percent and 8 percent undecided. Says the polling memo: Yvette Herrell emerged from the Republican primary with an image stronger than how she ended the 2018 campaign. She is well positioned for a vigorous give and take against the Congresswoman this Fall. Yvette better be positioned for a "vigorous give and take." When she faced Torres Small in 2018 she copped out of TV debates. POLITICAL RESTAURANTS  . . . While large crowds are allowed to patronize Big Box Stores, mom-and-pop restaurants are asked to suffer more economic hardship. This arbitrary, inconsistent forced shutdown order will devastate hard-working restaurant owners who have done all that's been required of them to keep their customers safe. I urge the governor to immediately reverse her ill-considered shutdown order and allow restaurants to resume safely serving New Mexicans. Dems are hoping Hickey's timely medical credentials (he is a longtime physician) and less enthusiasm for President Trump will combine to flip the seat which has long been held by the R's. Morton is a retired Air Force intelligence officer. This is the home of New Mexico politics. E-mail your news and comments. (newsguy@yahoo.com) Interested in reaching New Mexico's most informed audience? Advertise here.   (c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2020 |
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